Switzerland's banking regulator is forced to drop a probe against former Raiffeisen boss Pierin Vincenz. It is a Pyrrhic victory for the Swiss banking veteran, and leaves a blemish on a long-running career.
Swiss banking regulator Finma said it will mothball a fitness and probity investigation against Pierin Vincenz, one of Switzerland's best-known bankers who presided over Swiss lender Raiffeisen for 16 years. The 62-year-old banker himself stymied the probe by giving up his last board mandate earlier this week, at Swiss insurer Helvetia.
«From a regulatory perspective, the proceedings have therefore become redundant in this particular case,» Bern-based Finma said in a statement. It is an unsatisfying ending to a probe opened last month to investigate whether Vincenz blurred the lines on governance with personal investments in which Raiffeisen was also party to.
For Vincenz, it is an ignominous end to a stellar 36-year career in banking. He remains chairman of Investnet, in which he also holds a 15 percent personal stake, but the firm does not fall under Finma's purview.
Raiffeisen On The Hook
Finma said it shuttered the probe because Vincenz's career as a board member in financial services is over. «Pierin Vincenz has...undertaken not to assume this type of appointment at financial companies in the future.»
The regulator made clear that it isn't entirely happy dropping the matter, outlining what it views as misguided conduct by Vincenz in some detail. Its initial proceedings had «raised questions over the proper business conduct» by Vincenz, especially how conflicts of interest over significant shareholdings were handled.
Ironically, Raiffeisen is still on the hook with Finma, despite Vincenz's exit more than two years ago. The regulator said it will continue to probe corporate governance at Raiffeisen, where Vincenz's wife Nadja Ceregato has long been chief counsel, in an enforcement proceeding – one of the few disciplinary weapons the regulator in Switzerland has.
